2. New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

2. New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico USGS-OFR-92-528 USGS-OFR-92-528 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY A geologic overview and one-day field guide of the Taos Plateau volcanic field, Taos County, New Mexico Ren A. Thompson Nancy J. Open-File Report 92-528 This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with U.S. Geological Survey editorial standards or stratigraphic nomenclature. 1992 1. USGS, Denver, Colorado. 2. New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico. INTRODUCTION The Rio Grande rift region of northern New Mexico provides an excellent opportunity to examine the interplay of volcanism, extensional tectonism, and sedimentation within the only active continental rift in North America. This field guide provides researchers and students with an overview of the volcanology, petrology, and geochemistry of the Miocene to Pliestocene volcanic rocks of the Taos Plateau and their relation to rift structure and tectonics. Structure of the Rift Basins of Northern New Mexico The Rio Grande rift is a late Cenozoic feature in continental crust of Proterozoic age (1.7-1.4 Ga) which, prior to rifting, experienced deformation during the Uncompaghre (late Paleozoic) and Laramide (late Cretaceous to Eocene) orogenies. Rift basins exhibit the same N-S trend as Laramide compressional structures in the southern Rocky Mountains, and are located near the eastern margin of the region affected by Laramide deformation. The rift is a major physiographic and structural feature of the southern Rocky Mountains extending northward from a poorly defined terminus in northern Chihuahua, Mexico, through New Mexico, and into central Colorado (Tweto, 1979). Normal faulting, regional uplift, high heat flow (Decker and others, 1984), and scattered occurrences of volcanic rocks of late Cenozoic age associated with rifting are present as far north as southern Wyoming (e.g., Leucite Hills). The Rio Grande rift comprises two segments, the northern segment extending northward from Socorro, New Mexico, into Colorado and the southern segment extending south from Socorro into Mexico (Cordell, 1978). In the regionally broader southern segment, the tectonic style and physiography resemble that of the Basin and Range province: extension is distributed over several wide basins, lithospheric thinning and regional extension have reached an advanced stage, and regional elevations are lower than in the north. In the northern segment, rift basins separate the Colorado Plateau on the west from the High Plains to the east and are confined to a narrow axial zone superimposed on a region of high elevation. During the early stage of rifting, extension-related faults tended to have northwest trends (Aldrich and others, 1986), whereas later Pliocene to Quaternary extension in the Rio Grande rift has produced normal faulting within the axial zone of the rift with predominantly N-S orientations. The younger phase of rifting which followed a period of relative tectonic and magmatic quiescence in the late Miocene (20-12 Ma), is characterized by a narrowing of rift basins, where early basin-fill sediments of the Santa Fe Group are commonly found on the uplifted blocks adjacent to present rift basins (Golombek, 1983). The post-Miocene rejuvenation of rifting was accompanied by widespread, dominantly basaltic volcanism, active regional uplift, and large differential movements on basin-bounding faults that created deep asymmetric basins. In the area of the northern rift from Albuquerque, New Mexico, to Leadville, Colorado, the rift basins are arrayed in en echelon patterns and are offset along commonly northeast-trending oblique structures (fig. 1). The intense regional northeast structural grain of Proterozoic basement rocks control northeast-trending Cenozoic structures. For example, both the graben faults of the resurgent dome of the Valles caldera (Jemez volcanic field) and the Embudo fault zone (the southern structural boundary of the San Luis basin) strike to the northeast (fig. 1). The Embudo fault zone in addition to several other northeast- trending faults serve as boundaries, or accommodation zones, that separate differentially tilted, rhomb-shaped structural blocks with longest dimensions that are generally coincident with the axis of the northern rift. Independent tilting and rotating of these blocks as structural units bounded by reactivated zones of weakness, produced the pattern of en echelon offsets and opposing tilts of the basins and uplifts of the northern rift segment. SANGRE DECRISTO MOUNTAINS RATON-CLAYTON VOLCANIC FIELD LATIR OLCANIC FIELD TIMBER MTN. SAN JUAN BASIN AND BRUSHY MTN. OCATE VOLCANIC FIELD EXPLANATION MIOCENE AND YOUNGER VOLCANIC ROCKS SEDIMENTARY ROCKS IN THE RIO GRANDE RIFT (Miocene to Holocene) MIDDLE TERTIARY VOLCANIC ROCKS INTRUSIVE ROCKS (Laramide to lower Miocene) PALEOZOIC AND MESOZOIC SEDI­ MENTARY ROCKS PRECAMBRIAN ROCKS NORMAL FAULT (dashed where inferred; bar and ball on downthrown side) C ALDERA BOUNDARY TREND OF JEMEZ ZONE Figure 1.-Generalized geologic map of the Southern Rocky Mountains, showing location of the middle to late Tertiary volcanic fields of the northern Rio Grande rift region and their proximity to major Precambrain uplifts and the Jemez zone. The San Luis basin segment of the Rio Grande rift includes the San Luis Valley and the Taos Plateau underlain by lavas of the Taos Plateau volcanic field. The San Luis basin is broken into two east-tilted blocks by a northeast-trending fault zone (Sr. side up) that forms the northern boundary of the structurally high San Luis Hills and creates the reentrant of the front of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in southern Colorado (fig. 1). Patterns of gravity anomalies of the central San Luis basin show the boundary between these blocks (Keller and others, 1984). The two San Luis basin sub-blocks have a weak component of southerly tilt as well as a more dominant easterly tilt. This southeasterly dip within the basin opposes the pronounced northerly tilt of the adjacent Sangre de Cristo block (Lipman, 1981), emphasizing the independent motion that characterizes these blocks. On the south of the Embudo fault zone, the Espaftola basin block has apparently undergone counterclockwise rotation (Brown and Golombek, 1985), resulting in compressional structures at the northeastern end of the Embudo zone near Taos and in extension at the southwestern end at Velarde. The northeast-trending Jemez zone is defined most clearly by an alignment of Miocene and younger volcanic fields (fig. 1) extending from the southeastern margin of the Colorado Plateau (Mt. Taylor volcanic field) through the axis of the rift (Jemez volcanic field) to southeastern Colorado-northeastern New Mexico (Raton- Clayton volcanic field). Thus defined, the Jemez zone crosses several physiographic provinces. The occurrence of these volcanic fields along the Jemez zone has been interpreted as an indication that a major Precambrian crustal shear or suture zone, reactivated by extensional stresses, has acted as a conduit for the mantle-derived magmas that regionally dominate post-Miocene volcanism (Baldridge and others, 1984). However, the striking alignment of the volcanic fields is not matched by evidence that shallow structures within the northeast Jemez zone are important in controlling vent alignments within each volcanic field. Taos Plateau Volcanic Field The Taos Plateau volcanic field, in the San Luis basin of northern New Mexico, is one of the largest and most diverse volcanic fields associated with the Rio Grande rift and the Jemez zone, covering approximately 1500 km2. Compositionally diverse volcanic rocks were erupted over a period of 24 million years (from 26 Ma to 2 Ma) and include tholeiitic basalts, trachybasalts, basaltic trachyandesites, calc-alkaline andesites, dacites, and rhyolites. Volcanism of three distinct ages is recorded in the Taos Plateau volcanic field (table 1). Early-rift (26-22 Ma) calc-alkaline lavas and pyroclastic rocks associated with the Latir volcanic field are preserved as intra-rift horsts. No volcanic activity has been dated on the Taos Plateau between 20 Ma and 10 Ma, corresponding to a postulated rift-wide mid-Miocene tectonic and magmatic lull (20-12 Ma). However, sporadic basaltic volcanism occurred in the northern Rio Grande rift on the flanks of the Taos Plateau, to the west in the Tusas Mountains, and to the east in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. A single eruption of quartz latite, Cerro Chiflo, has been dated at 10.2 Ma and represents the only exposed remnant of volcanic activity in the Taos Plateau volcanic field between the early-rift and voluminous Plio-Pleistocene volcanism. Olivine tholeiites, calc-alkaline olivine andesites and two-pyroxene dacites, and rhyolites erupted from 5 Ma to 2 Ma and constitute the predominant volcanic cover of the Taos Plateau. Oligocene to Miocene volcanic rocks Dacite, andesite, and rhyolite lavas, and rhyolite ash-flow tuffs exposed on an intrarift horst at Timber Mountain and Brushy Mountain in the San Luis basin (fig. 2) are clearly associated with volcanic rocks of the Latir volcanic field (Thompson and others, 1986). All units exposed on the horst post-date the caldera-forming outflow sheet from the Qjiesta system (fig. 3; the Amalia Tuff) and represent a regeneration of metaluminous magmas similar to the Questa plutons. Lipman (1984) presents a model for the Questa system in which precaldera calc-alkaline magmas, represented by the intrusions, evolve toward more silicic and alkalic compositions, resulting in the mildly alkalic Amalia tuff. Post-caldera magmas return to metaluminous compositions. Ceiro Chiflo Brushy Mtn. -36°40' Umber Mtn. Taos Plateau 36°30f -36*20' Pilar Figure 2.-Generalized location map depicting field guide stop locations and some of the prominant physiographic features discussed in the text. Two sequences of volcanic rocks are exposed on the horst blocks (Thompson and others, 1986). The lower sequence is dominated by dacite (plag + cpx + opx + Fe-Ti oxides ± hbld), but includes basaltic andesite (ol + cpx + plag) and low-silica rhyolite (plag + san + qtz + bt + Fe-Ti oxides). Dacites contain quenched andesitic micropillows, high-silica rhyolite glass, and sanidine and oligoclase xenocrysts.
Recommended publications
  • University of Oklahoma Graduate College
    UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE POTENTIAL FIELD STUDIES OF THE CENTRAL SAN LUIS BASIN AND SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS, COLORADO AND NEW MEXICO, AND SOUTHERN AND WESTERN AFGHANISTAN A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY By BENJAMIN JOHN DRENTH Norman, Oklahoma 2009 POTENTIAL FIELD STUDIES OF THE CENTRAL SAN LUIS BASIN AND SAN JUAN MOUNTAINS, COLORADO AND NEW MEXICO, AND SOUTHERN AND WESTERN AFGHANISTAN A DISSERTATION APPROVED FOR THE CONOCOPHILLIPS SCHOOL OF GEOLOGY AND GEOPHYSICS BY _______________________________ Dr. G. Randy Keller, Chair _______________________________ Dr. V.J.S. Grauch _______________________________ Dr. Carol Finn _______________________________ Dr. R. Douglas Elmore _______________________________ Dr. Ze’ev Reches _______________________________ Dr. Carl Sondergeld © Copyright by BENJAMIN JOHN DRENTH 2009 All Rights Reserved. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction…………………………………………………………………………..……1 Chapter A: Geophysical Constraints on Rio Grande Rift Structure in the Central San Luis Basin, Colorado and New Mexico………………………………………………………...2 Chapter B: A Geophysical Study of the San Juan Mountains Batholith, southwestern Colorado………………………………………………………………………………….61 Chapter C: Geophysical Expression of Intrusions and Tectonic Blocks of Southern and Western Afghanistan…………………………………………………………………....110 Conclusions……………………………………………………………………………..154 iv LIST OF TABLES Chapter A: Geophysical Constraints on Rio Grande Rift Structure in the Central
    [Show full text]
  • Geology of the Cebolla Quadrangle, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
    BULLETIN 92 Geology of the Cebolla Quadrangle Rio Arriba County, New Mexico by HUGH H. DONEY 1 9 6 8 STATE BUREAU OF MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING & TECHNOLOGY CAMPUS STATION SOCORRO, NEW MEXICO NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING AND TECHNOLOGY STIRLING A. COLGATE, President STATE BUREAU OF MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES FRANK E. KOTTLOWSKI, Acting Director THE REGENTS MEMBERS Ex OFFICIO The Honorable David F. Cargo ...................................... Governor of New Mexico Leonard DeLayo ................................................. Superintendent of Public Instruction APPOINTED MEMBERS William G. Abbott .........................................................................................Hobbs Henry S. Birdseye ............................................................................... Albuquerque Thomas M. Cramer ................................................................................... Carlsbad Steve S. Torres, Jr. ....................................................................................... Socorro Richard M. Zimmerly .................................................................................... Socorro For sale by the New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources Campus Station, Socorro, N. Mex. 87801—Price $3.00 Abstract The Cebolla quadrangle overlaps two physiographic provinces, the San Juan Basin and the Tusas Mountains. Westward-dipping Mesozoic rocks, Quaternary cinder cones and flow rock, and Quaternary gravel terraces occur in the Chama Basin of the San Juan
    [Show full text]
  • Ignimbrites to Batholiths Ignimbrites to Batholiths: Integrating Perspectives from Geological, Geophysical, and Geochronological Data
    Ignimbrites to batholiths Ignimbrites to batholiths: Integrating perspectives from geological, geophysical, and geochronological data Peter W. Lipman1,* and Olivier Bachmann2 1U.S. Geological Survey, Mail Stop 910, Menlo Park, California 94028, USA 2Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, ETH Zurich, CH-8092 Zürich, Switzerland ABSTRACT related intrusions cooled and solidified soon shorter. Magma-supply estimates (from ages after zircon crystallization, as magma sup- and volcano-plutonic volumes) yield focused Multistage histories of incremental accu- ply waned. Some researchers interpret these intrusion-assembly rates sufficient to gener- mulation, fractionation, and solidification results as recording pluton assembly in small ate ignimbrite-scale volumes of eruptible during construction of large subvolcanic increments that crystallized rapidly, leading magma, based on published thermal models. magma bodies that remained sufficiently to temporal disconnects between ignimbrite Mid-Tertiary processes of batholith assembly liquid to erupt are recorded by Tertiary eruption and intrusion growth. Alternatively, associated with the SRMVF caused drastic ignimbrites, source calderas, and granitoid crystallization ages of the granitic rocks chemical and physical reconstruction of the intrusions associated with large gravity lows are here inferred to record late solidifica- entire lithosphere, probably accompanied by at the Southern Rocky Mountain volcanic tion, after protracted open-system evolution asthenospheric input. field (SRMVF). Geophysical
    [Show full text]
  • Some Effects of Fire on Shrubs and Succulents in a Chihuahuan Desert Community in the Franklin Mountains, El Paso County, Texas Richard D
    No. 3 January 1987 Contributed Papers of the SECOND SYMPOSIUM ON RESOURCES OF THE CHIHUAHUAN DESERT REGION United States and Mexico —BOTANICAL BIOLOGY— A. Michael Powell, Editor Some Effects of Fire on Shrubs and Succulents in a Chihuahuan Desert Community in the Franklin Mountains, El Paso County, Texas Richard D. Worthington and Rafael D. Corral THE CHIHUAHUAN DESERT RESEARCH INSTITUTE (CDRI) is a nonprofit scientific and educational organization. Its purpose is the collection and dissemination of information pertaining to the Chihuahuan Desert Region of the United States and Mexico. Memberships are available. Annual dues: Individual, $15; Student, $10; Family and Institutional, $25. The Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute publishes the semiannual magazine Chihuahuan Desert Discovery, which is free to members. Nonmembers and members receive our semiannual bulletin Chihuahuan Desert NewsBriefs. Papers in this series were presented during the Second Symposium on the Resources of the Chihuahuan Desert: United States and Mexico, at Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas, on October 20—21, 1983, and have been subjected to peer review. Contributed Papers of the SECOND SYMPOSIUM ON RESOURCES OF THE CHIHUAHUAN DESERT: United States and Mexico is a series by the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute, Box 1334, Alpine,; Texas 79831; 915—837-8370. Copyright © 1986 by the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute SOME EFFECTS OF FIRE ON SHRUBS AND SUCCULENTS IN A CHIHUAHUAN DESERT COMMUNITY IN THE FRANKLIN MOUNTAINS, EL PASO COUNTY, TEXAS RICHARD D. WORTHINGTON AND RAFAEL D. CORRAL, DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO, EL PASO, TEXAS 79968 ABSTRACT.--On 15 July 1981, a fire burned about 30 ha of Chihua— huan desertscrub community in the Franklin Mountains, El Paso County, Texas.
    [Show full text]
  • Geologic Summary of the Abiquiu Quadrangle, North-Central New Mexico Florian Maldonado and Daniel P
    New Mexico Geological Society Downloaded from: http://nmgs.nmt.edu/publications/guidebooks/58 Geologic summary of the Abiquiu quadrangle, north-central New Mexico Florian Maldonado and Daniel P. Miggins, 2007, pp. 182-187 in: Geology of the Jemez Region II, Kues, Barry S., Kelley, Shari A., Lueth, Virgil W.; [eds.], New Mexico Geological Society 58th Annual Fall Field Conference Guidebook, 499 p. This is one of many related papers that were included in the 2007 NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebook. Annual NMGS Fall Field Conference Guidebooks Every fall since 1950, the New Mexico Geological Society (NMGS) has held an annual Fall Field Conference that explores some region of New Mexico (or surrounding states). Always well attended, these conferences provide a guidebook to participants. Besides detailed road logs, the guidebooks contain many well written, edited, and peer-reviewed geoscience papers. These books have set the national standard for geologic guidebooks and are an essential geologic reference for anyone working in or around New Mexico. Free Downloads NMGS has decided to make peer-reviewed papers from our Fall Field Conference guidebooks available for free download. Non-members will have access to guidebook papers two years after publication. Members have access to all papers. This is in keeping with our mission of promoting interest, research, and cooperation regarding geology in New Mexico. However, guidebook sales represent a significant proportion of our operating budget. Therefore, only research papers are available for download. Road logs, mini-papers, maps, stratigraphic charts, and other selected content are available only in the printed guidebooks. Copyright Information Publications of the New Mexico Geological Society, printed and electronic, are protected by the copyright laws of the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • Sister Onfa: Uranian Missionary to Mesilla John Buescher
    ISSN 1076-9072 SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO HISTORICAL REVIEW Pasajero del Camino Real By Doña Ana County Historical Society Volume XXVIII Las Cruces, New Mexico January 2021 Doña Ana County Historical Society Publisher Board of Directors for 2021 President: Dennis Daily Southern New Mexico Historical Review Vice President: Garland Courts Secretary: Jim Eckles Sponsors Treasurer: Dennis Fuller Historian: Sally Kading Past President: Susan Krueger Bob and Cherie Gamboa At Large Board Members Frank and Priscilla Parrish Luis Rios Robert and Alice Distlehorst Sim Middleton Jose Aranda Susan Krueger and Jesus Lopez Daniel Aguilera James and Lana Eckman Bob Gamboa Buddy Ritter Merle and Linda Osborn Frank Brito Review Editor position open - contact [email protected] Review Factotum: Jim Eckles Dylan McDonald Mildred Miles Cover Drawing by Jose Cisneros (Reproduced with permission of the artist) George Helfrich The Southern New Mexico Historical Review (ISSN-1076-9072) is looking for original articles concern- Dennis Daily ing the Southwestern Border Region. Biography, local and family histories, oral history and well-edited Nancy Baker documents are welcome. Charts, illustrations or photographs are encouraged to accompany submissions. We are also in need of book reviewers, proofreaders, and someone in marketing and distribution. Barbara Stevens Current copies of the Southern New Mexico Historical Review are available for $10. If ordering by mail, Glennis Adam please include $2.00 for postage and handling. Back issues of the print versions of the Southern New Mexico Historical Review are no longer available. However, all issues since 1994 are available at the Leslie Bergloff Historical Society’s website: http://www.donaanacountyhistsoc.org.
    [Show full text]
  • Cenozoic Thermal, Mechanical and Tectonic Evolution of the Rio Grande Rift
    JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 91, NO. B6, PAGES 6263-6276, MAY 10, 1986 Cenozoic Thermal, Mechanical and Tectonic Evolution of the Rio Grande Rift PAUL MORGAN1 Departmentof Geosciences,Purdue University,West Lafayette, Indiana WILLIAM R. SEAGER Departmentof Earth Sciences,New Mexico State University,Las Cruces MATTHEW P. GOLOMBEK Jet PropulsionLaboratory, CaliforniaInstitute of Technology,Pasadena Careful documentationof the Cenozoicgeologic history of the Rio Grande rift in New Mexico reveals a complexsequence of events.At least two phasesof extensionhave been identified.An early phase of extensionbegan in the mid-Oligocene(about 30 Ma) and may have continuedto the early Miocene (about 18 Ma). This phaseof extensionwas characterizedby local high-strainextension events (locally, 50-100%,regionally, 30-50%), low-anglefaulting, and the developmentof broad, relativelyshallow basins, all indicatingan approximatelyNE-SW •-25ø extensiondirection, consistent with the regionalstress field at that time.Extension events were not synchronousduring early phase extension and were often temporally and spatiallyassociated with major magmatism.A late phaseof extensionoccurred primarily in the late Miocene(10-5 Ma) with minor extensioncontinuing to the present.It was characterizedby apparently synchronous,high-angle faulting givinglarge verticalstrains with relativelyminor lateral strain (5-20%) whichproduced the moderuRio Granderift morphology.Extension direction was approximatelyE-W, consistentwith the contemporaryregional stress field. Late phasegraben or half-grabenbasins cut and often obscureearly phasebroad basins.Early phase extensionalstyle and basin formation indicate a ductilelithosphere, and this extensionoccurred during the climax of Paleogenemagmatic activity in this zone.Late phaseextensional style indicates a more brittle lithosphere,and this extensionfollowed a middle Miocenelull in volcanism.Regional uplift of about1 km appearsto haveaccompanied late phase extension, andrelatively minor volcanism has continued to thepresent.
    [Show full text]
  • Mosaic of New Mexico's Scenery, Rocks, and History
    Mosaic of New Mexico's Scenery, Rocks, and History SCENIC TRIPS TO THE GEOLOGIC PAST NO. 8 Scenic Trips to the Geologic Past Series: No. 1—SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO No. 2—TAOS—RED RIVER—EAGLE NEST, NEW MEXICO, CIRCLE DRIVE No. 3—ROSWELL—CAPITAN—RUIDOSO AND BOTTOMLESS LAKES STATE PARK, NEW MEXICO No. 4—SOUTHERN ZUNI MOUNTAINS, NEW MEXICO No. 5—SILVER CITY—SANTA RITA—HURLEY, NEW MEXICO No. 6—TRAIL GUIDE TO THE UPPER PECOS, NEW MEXICO No. 7—HIGH PLAINS NORTHEASTERN NEW MEXICO, RATON- CAPULIN MOUNTAIN—CLAYTON No. 8—MOSlAC OF NEW MEXICO'S SCENERY, ROCKS, AND HISTORY No. 9—ALBUQUERQUE—ITS MOUNTAINS, VALLEYS, WATER, AND VOLCANOES No. 10—SOUTHWESTERN NEW MEXICO No. 11—CUMBRE,S AND TOLTEC SCENIC RAILROAD C O V E R : REDONDO PEAK, FROM JEMEZ CANYON (Forest Service, U.S.D.A., by John Whiteside) Mosaic of New Mexico's Scenery, Rocks, and History (Forest Service, U.S.D.A., by Robert W . Talbott) WHITEWATER CANYON NEAR GLENWOOD SCENIC TRIPS TO THE GEOLOGIC PAST NO. 8 Mosaic of New Mexico's Scenery, Rocks, a n d History edited by PAIGE W. CHRISTIANSEN and FRANK E. KOTTLOWSKI NEW MEXICO BUREAU OF MINES AND MINERAL RESOURCES 1972 NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING & TECHNOLOGY STIRLING A. COLGATE, President NEW MEXICO BUREAU OF MINES & MINERAL RESOURCES FRANK E. KOTTLOWSKI, Director BOARD OF REGENTS Ex Officio Bruce King, Governor of New Mexico Leonard DeLayo, Superintendent of Public Instruction Appointed William G. Abbott, President, 1961-1979, Hobbs George A. Cowan, 1972-1975, Los Alamos Dave Rice, 1972-1977, Carlsbad Steve Torres, 1967-1979, Socorro James R.
    [Show full text]
  • Promise Beheld and the Limits of Place
    Promise Beheld and the Limits of Place A Historic Resource Study of Carlsbad Caverns and Guadalupe Mountains National Parks and the Surrounding Areas By Hal K. Rothman Daniel Holder, Research Associate National Park Service, Southwest Regional Office Series Number Acknowledgments This book would not be possible without the full cooperation of the men and women working for the National Park Service, starting with the superintendents of the two parks, Frank Deckert at Carlsbad Caverns National Park and Larry Henderson at Guadalupe Mountains National Park. One of the true joys of writing about the park system is meeting the professionals who interpret, protect and preserve the nation’s treasures. Just as important are the librarians, archivists and researchers who assisted us at libraries in several states. There are too many to mention individuals, so all we can say is thank you to all those people who guided us through the catalogs, pulled books and documents for us, and filed them back away after we left. One individual who deserves special mention is Jed Howard of Carlsbad, who provided local insight into the area’s national parks. Through his position with the Southeastern New Mexico Historical Society, he supplied many of the photographs in this book. We sincerely appreciate all of his help. And finally, this book is the product of many sacrifices on the part of our families. This book is dedicated to LauraLee and Lucille, who gave us the time to write it, and Talia, Brent, and Megan, who provide the reasons for writing. Hal Rothman Dan Holder September 1998 i Executive Summary Located on the great Permian Uplift, the Guadalupe Mountains and Carlsbad Caverns national parks area is rich in prehistory and history.
    [Show full text]
  • Plan for the Recovery of Desert Bighorn Sheep in New Mexico 2003-2013
    PLAN FOR THE RECOVERY OF DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP IN NEW MEXICO 2003-2013 New Mexico Department of Game and Fish August 2003 Executive Summary Desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis mexicana) were once prolific in New Mexico, occupying most arid mountain ranges in the southern part of the state. Over-hunting, and disease transmission from livestock are 2 primary reasons for the dramatic decline in bighorn sheep numbers throughout the west during the early 1900s. In 1980, desert bighorn were placed on New Mexico’s endangered species list. From 1992-2003, approximately 25% of bighorn were radiocollared to learn causes of mortality driving this species towards extinction. Approximately 85% of all known-cause non-hunter killed radiocollared individuals have been killed by mountain lions. Despite the lack of a native ungulate prey base in desert bighorn range, mountain lion populations remain high, leading to the hypothesis that mountain lions are subsidized predators feeding on exotic ungulates, including cattle. Lack of fine fuels from cattle grazing have resulted in a lack of fire on the landscape. This has lead to increased woody vegetation which inhibits bighorn’s ability to detect and escape from predators. Bighorn numbers in spring 2003 in New Mexico totaled 213 in the wild, and 91 at the Red Rock captive breeding facility. This is in spite of releasing 266 bighorn from Red Rock and 30 bighorn from Arizona between 1979 and 2002. Several existing herds of desert bighorn likely need an augmentation to prevent them from going extinct. The presence of domestic sheep and Barbary sheep, which pose risks to bighorn from fatal disease transmission and aggression, respectively, preclude reintroduction onto many unoccupied mountain ranges.
    [Show full text]
  • New Mexico Geological Society Spring Meeting Abstracts
    include allowing growth to become dependent in the Taos region; an inventory and geochemi- on a continually shrinking supply, responsibility cal study of the springs in the Rio Grande gorge; Abstracts for the perpetual pumping, and commitment of a paleoseismic trenching study of the southern future energy resources. Sangre de Cristo fault near Taos; and a study of the geology, hydrogeology, and hydrogeochem- INVITED SPEAKERS istry of surface water/ground water interactions along the Rio Grande in northern Taos County. New Mexico Geological Society THE SAN LUIS BASIN OF THE NORTHERN The Taos Soil & Water Conservation District has spring meeting RIO GRANDE RIFT, P. W. Bauer, bauer@nmt. inventoried water wells and mapped the ground edu, New Mexico Bureau of Geology and water and water quality of the county. Over The New Mexico Geological Society annual Mineral Resources, New Mexico Institute of many years, Glorieta Geoscience, Inc., has inves- spring meeting was held on April 18, 2008, at Mining and Technology, Socorro, New Mexico tigated the hydrogeology, aquifer characteristics, Best Western Convention Center, Socorro. Fol- 87801 and hydrogeochemistry of the Taos region. lowing are the abstracts from all sessions given The San Luis Basin (SLB) is the northernmost at that meeting. large basin of the Rio Grande rift. It extends EVOLVING GEOLOGIC UNDERSTANDING about 240 km from Velarde, New Mexico, to OF THE ESPAÑOLA BASIN, RIO GRANDE Keynote presentation p. 52 Poncha Pass, Colorado, encompassing the San RIFT, NORTHERN NEW MEXICO, G. A. Invited speakers p. 52 Luis Valley to the north and the Taos Plateau to Smith, [email protected], Department of Earth Session 1—Rio Grande rift, San Luis and Española the south.
    [Show full text]
  • Seg Sp-2 Giant Ore Deposits 285
    SEG SP-2 GIANT ORE DEPOSITS 285 THE GENESIS OF GIANT PORPHYRY MOLYBDENUM DEPOSITS J. D. Keith, E. H. Christiansen Department of Geology, Brigham Young University Provo, Utah U.S.A., 84604 and R. B. Carten U. S. Geological Survey, Mackay School of Mines Reno, Nevada U.S.A., 89557-0047 ABSTRACT Giant porphyry molybdenum deposits are best exemplified by the Climax and Henderson deposits in Colorado. The high grades of these deposits are probably inherited from magmatic molybdenum concentrations of about 4 to 5 ppm, which are high for metaluminous rhyolitic magmas that average about 2 ppm molybdenum. High magmatic molybdenum concentrations in metaluminous rocks appear to be related to high magmatic oxygen fugacities (2 or 3 log units above QFM oxygen buffer) and are correlated with high niobium concentrations. High oxygen fugacities are likely inherited from calc-alkaline or lamprophyric predecessors. High niobium and molybdenum are related to extreme fractionation of rhyolitic magmas. Much higher concentrations of molybdenum (> 1,000 ppm) in the ore fluid (and the cupola magma) are probably achieved by crystallization in the deeper portions of a magma chamber accompanied by convection of the evolved liquid to the cupola and volatile fluxing. Exploration criteria for a giant, high-grade deposit include: 1) a tectonic setting that indicates a changeover from compressional to extensional tectonics, 2) thick continental crust at the time of deposit formation may encourage extreme differentiationand crustal contamination, 3) an isotopically zoned magma chamber indicative of a long-lived heat source, 4) a large, sub-volcanic, central-vent ash flow/dome system that erupted less than 100 km3 of rhyolite, and 5) high niobium concentrations (> 75 ppm) in a subalkaline, magnetite-bearing rhyolite.
    [Show full text]